Category Archives: Parenting

All Pro Dad: Seven Essentials to be a Hero to your Kids By Mark Merrill

Published by Thomas Nelson

Mark Merrill has done a great job in bring together 7 essential things a man needs to do to make a positive impact on his family. Mark helps the reader to look first of all at understanding who they are first of all and then building onto that to help each man see how they need to interact with their kids and spouse.

I appreciate that Mark does not make it seem like the solutions and being an awesome dad are simple, but also he doesn’t make it out to be rocket science. He points out that being an “All Pro Dad” does take work and effect and investment.

As a dad I look forward to implementing the 7 essentials into my family life.

Having a toddler can help you reflect a lot on yourself…. I know I have always struggled with acceptance and who I am as an individual. I am starting to see some of that in my daughter and it scares me a little. When we tell her that she did something that made us sad or the like she will say, “I just want to make you happy”….. It breaks your heart when you hear those words out of your child’s mouth.

We all have a part in us that so longs to be accepted, to be loved for who we are. I think this is something that we as followers of Christ often forget to address in our relationships with others. We forget that we are God’s hand and feet and a vessel in which others can feel and know God’s love. As a parent I know that I need to make sure that my daughter knows that I love her, despite the times she tests my patience or disobeys. I never want her to go to bed after a long day thinking that I don’t love her. I am trying my best to invest time into her with “daddy dates” to show her that I care and love her. I am trying to follow up discipline with a small chat, saying sorries and hugging with an “I love you” attached.

Part of my struggles go back to feeling loved and accepted. Not just by my parents but by those who were “my friends”, older adults around me, people who I looked up to. I think we need to all be aware that we ALL have the need to be accepted. I want my daughter to grow up knowing always that she is loved and accepted. I want her to have that confidence.

What can you do to instill that confidence in those around you?

Do you have friends who will pour that into you?

How has this battle for acceptance/love hurt you? What part has it played in your bad decisions?

We are always growing and changing. We all will have times that we are strong and times that we are weak. We need to all know that God Loves us (John 3:16, I John 4:7, 10-11). It is so easy to say and we all still desire for others to show us that we are loved and accepted. We are humans in a fallen world.

Know that you are loved and accepted by the Father and giver of life. Take time to ponder that, but also to ponder how you can spread His love and acceptance to those who need to hear it around you.